Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Collegiate Invitational
Date: Saturday, Jan. 22
Time: 9 a.m. (MT) / 8 a.m. (PT)
Location: Albuquerque Convention Center - Albuquerque, N.M.
Live Stream // Live Results // Meet Schedule & Entries

Notes (PDF)

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's track & field team is ready to make its return to indoor competition this weekend. After the cancellation of the 2021 season, the Anteaters are eager to get back to work with a four-meet schedule, starting on Saturday, Jan. 22, at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Collegiate Invitational. The meet, which is hosted by the University of New Mexico, is set to get underway at 9 a.m. (MT)/8 a.m. (PT) at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
 
STORYLINES
• UC Irvine will be taking part in its first indoor meet in nearly two years (Feb. 28-29, 2020).
• Twenty-three Anteaters are entered in 12 different events in Saturday's season opener.
• Twenty-seven of the 37 student-athletes on the 'Eater roster have yet to compete in an indoor meet for UCI.
• UC Irvine will make three trips to Albuquerque before the MPSF Championships in February.
• The MPSF will look different this year with the departure of the Pac-12 schools.
• In 2022, the meet will feature nine women's teams from the Big West and West Coast Conferences.
• It will also be held at The Podium in Spokane, Washington, for the first time.
 
THROWS
• Despite a lack of depth, UC Irvine is still expected to be strong in the throws.
• Deandra Tyler and Kassidy Sani will lead the way after scoring at the 2021 Big West Championships.
• Tyler finished fifth in the shot put, and established the seventh-best mark in outdoor school history (44-00.5).
• Sani was also fourth in the discus where she ranks ninth on UCI's all-time charts (153-00).
 
DISTANCE/MIDDLE DISTANCE
• Hannah Chau headlines a distance crew that is coming off one of its best cross country seasons in recent years.
• Chau is the defending Big West champion in the outdoor 10K and is a two-time all-conference performer in cross.
• She enters her junior campaign ranked third in indoor program history in the 3000m (9:52.30).
• Adding depth will be true freshmen Anna Vogtmann and Makena Castillo, and sophomore Cathy Salazar-Gasca.
• Graduate transfers Jennifer Daly (USC) and Emma McCarthy (Saint Mary's) also have high expectations in the 800m.
 
SPRINTS/HURDLES
• After nearly two years away from competitive track & field, Zani Meaders is back for the 'Eaters.
• Meaders, who redshirted the 2021 outdoor season, was last in action at the 2020 MPSF Championships.
• She placed 10th at the conference meet, and owns the indoor school record in the 400m at 54.81.
• Mia Marquez is set to join Meaders in the 400m after an All-Big West finish (3rd) during the outdoor campaign.
• Aryel Coats is also expected to make some noise in the 60m and 200m.
• Anchoring the hurdles crew will be true freshman Reyna Johnson and sophomore Amari Fraser.
 
JUMPS
• Lorraine Nance, who sat out the 2021 outdoor season, will make her return to competition this year.
• Nance enters the campaign ranked fourth in program history in the indoor triple jump (38-02.25).
• In addition to their events on the track, Coats and Johnson will lead the way in the long jump.
 
COACH'S CORNER
"With a young group, we're continuing to try to develop and do the best we can with the amount of practice days we've had," head coach Jeff Perkins said. "We will try to get some momentum going into the MPSF Championships, which we're really looking forward to. If we have everyone healthy and ready to roll, our team could do really well. We're challenging ourselves to see where we can finish in the new-look MPSF."
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine returns to the Albuquerque Convention Center next Saturday, Jan. 29, for the UNM Team Open.